The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-12-13
THE SOUTH AS 1T is.
The Mississippi Farmers and
Their Profits.
HOW THE COTTON TAX AFFECTS THEM

GREENvTLLLE, Miss. November 18TH
| lStaf Correspondence Constitution. with
the richest land in the world, with thousands
| OF acres, with ample and cheap means OF reach
| ing great markets. there is no reason in the
world why the Mississippi planter should not
become the richest Of all agricultural people.
These arc broad assertions, / grant you, but
| they are too true to allow disbelief to enter; in
fact, the only man who really honestly doubts
the final success of the planter of this state is
the planter himself.
And why should he?
| Because, first, he has had for twelve long
years an unbroken run Of bad luck, bad crops,
overftows, labor troubles every imaginable
financial disorder, with not oven an occasional
| CLEAN from the clouds. Because, though he
be noble by reason of his many and his broad
| acres, he is a knight without retainers, noble
without serfs. His lands may be as rich as
| gold to change the figure, black as lead, they
are richer than gold TO the husbandman who
generously and honestly works them but no
matter how rich they arc, they have for over
twelve years been nothing but a source Of
debt. of trouble. of dshonor to him.
Willing to fly from his troubles, the
poor planter has been forced to
stay because none would buy of him, it mat
tered not the price. man told me the other
night on the train that he had four thousand
acres of prairie and wood land in Benton
county. For eight years he had planted it,
growing poorer every year; he saw ruin star
ing him in the face, and he left, going to Biz
mingham. That land, an acre of which would
make over 500 pounds of lint cotton, had for
four years been standing idle because no one
would give five thousand dollars for four
thousand acres.
/ asked him. "What was the trouble?"
"The labor" said he. "Why sir, able bodied
negroes that ought, on ordinary land, to have
made ten bales of cotton TO the mule, only
made TN ehere You couldn't get them to
work"
Such was the comment of the Mississippi
farmer, now a resident of Birmingham, and he
was then on his way to that Benton county
place, with money drawn from his business, to
pay taxes on the land.
Now let us take another case. met yester-
day a Cohoama county planter who held
nearly three thousand acres. He had just
finished disposing of about 800 bales Of cotton,
a part of his crop of GOO His land, if any
thing was poorer than the. Benton mans, but
he worked different system, though he en-
ployed the sa ne labor. He paid standing wages
of 500 and 500 per year with board, planted
ABOUT wv acres III COttoH, WORKED III wei,
as the yield showed, but in addition he raised
what? If / were to relate the number of bush
els of sweet potatoes he declared he got from an
ordinary acre, the variety being the Southern
Queen" my veracity would be injured! He
raised corn enough for his mules; he was forced
to buy his meat for the reason that for some
physical reason perhaps, his hogs would die
every year, but he bought for cash at low prices
and in big quantities, and that man was rich,
was up in the world, dressed well, rode in q
three hundred dollar buggy, and had served a
term in the Mississippi legislature.
Here, the two systems contrasted as to
results.
The tale of distress that fortwenty years has
come from the river bottom OF the Mississippi
is abouLended. The new order has begun, 1T
is evffSed in brighter prospects, brighter
faces, brighter homes. AS Governor Lowry
said yesterday, "what a wonderful thing is n
good crop year upon the people, and when he
went on to explain, to show how for the last
three years the crops had been getting better
and better, until the past season the result was
n good corn crop and fair cotton crop, it was
easy to realize what rain and sunshine meant
to the planter-rain and sunshine at the right
time.
1t is impossible to give anything like an ex-
act or perfect comparison of Missssppi's con-
dition. A most extraordinary phenomenon
presented itself when began an examination
of the books, that hastily closed them. For in
stance in 1854, the order in which the coun-
ties returning the largest valuation stood, was
Kinds, Lowndes and Warren; in 1885, the
order was Pamela, Warren, Kinds here you
see a county, Pamela, way down the list in
1884 heading the procession in 1885, while
last In 1885. There the figures stand on the
books and there is no explanation. The aud
itor can give You none, for he does not detail
his reports of county values, showing how
much live stock, implements, cash, watches,
etc, were ON hand. Details are scorned in his
Office, aggregates sum totals are solely dealt
with. Baiiled here, what am l TO 60? A
modest inquiry resulted in the information that
tho proper officer in each of the n counties
might supply the need!
The big river planters, those who farm tho
bottoms along the Mississippi, are forever
gambling with nature. Every seed that they
put in the ground has to be Matched with the
same degree 81 skin almost that a general
would employ in carrying out some great stra-
gctic plan. The broad. turbd stream along
thcir western border is n kind OF guerilla
friend 10 thcm--it is the river that makes the
land SO incomparably rich that annually
gives 10 il what thousands of dollars
could not arti6ciaily supply, yearly enrich
mcnt but while doing all this for them the
river frequently sweeps from them, ut one
blow the year s work
1t is impossible 10 conceive Of the damage
10 farming interests in this state by overflow
% the river.
A regularly planned campaign is waged
against IL, the levee being the salient point In
keeping mp that leyee, without which farming
operations would be impossible some interest
ing gossip and facts are here given. Tho river
affects, by its overflow, not only the part Of
the county lying along side. but the entire
county, and in addition the county behind the
one on the river. a double row OF counties
along the Mississippi river, in this state, are
continually endcayoring 20 check the progress
i've rise Of that majestic stream.
What are called "leyce districts" are organ
lied. These districts are composed OF from
two 20 three or four counties, charged with
the task Of keeping the river in control. The
first weapon to be employed in doing this is